The joint statement by the First and deputy First Ministers might be more convincing if the Northern Ireland Executive’s Shared Future strategy hadn’t disappeared down the back of the semi-detached polit-bureau’s sofa. Meanwhile in a statement issued through their solicitors, the McDaid family have criticised police “negotiations with a number of persons perceived to be from the Loyalist community” ahead of the murder of Kevin McDaid. As has already been stated, those negotiations involved representatives on both sides of the community, including Mr McDaid. It’s been a long established pattern of The Process™ to involve “those with influence” in such negotiations – especially those ubiquitous “community” workers.. But perhaps Kevin Myers is right..
If you want a symbol of what happens when you emasculate a police force, it goes by the name of Kevin McDaid, RIP. Two armed policemen on duty who see a gang of loyalist thugs armed with cudgels attacking a blameless mixed-community should have only one set of programmed responses. That is, to protect the innocent; if that means dropping a couple of the attackers — and by that, gentle reader, yes, I do mean shooting them dead — then so be it. If the dead had wanted to remain alive, they should have stayed at home.
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